Injured during physical therapy: what are my rights?

Can you be injured in physical therapy without malpractice?

Yes. Physical therapy often means hard movements and stretching, so soreness or discomfort can be part of normal treatment. An injury raises legal questions when it goes beyond expected soreness and comes from unsafe technique or failure to adjust treatment. The key question is whether the therapist followed the accepted standard of care.

This is general information, not medical advice. If you were hurt, see a doctor first.

What is the standard of care for physical therapists?

It is the level of skill and caution a competent therapist is expected to give. In general, a therapist should:

• Evaluate your condition.
• Follow the doctor’s instructions.
• Watch how you respond.
• Change the plan when needed.

That includes noticing warning signs like rising pain, instability, dizziness or loss of strength. If a therapist ignores them or keeps going with treatment that is clearly unsafe, and you are hurt, that may support a malpractice claim.

When does a therapy injury become malpractice?

When the therapist’s actions fall below what a reasonably careful professional would do. Examples can include pushing a patient too hard, ignoring pain, using an inappropriate technique or failing to modify an exercise for your condition. The focus is whether the injury could have been prevented with proper care.

What injuries can happen in physical therapy?

They range from minor to serious. Patients can have muscle tears, joint damage, nerve injuries, fractures or a worsening of an existing condition. Risk goes up when patients are overworked, helped the wrong way, left alone or asked to use unsafe or poorly maintained equipment. Whether an injury supports a claim depends on how it happened and whether proper care was given.

Who may be responsible?

More than one party can be. A therapist may be responsible for poor technique or lack of supervision. A clinic may be responsible if it failed to train staff, keep equipment safe or follow safety rules. Working out who is responsible takes a close look at the clinic’s policies and your treatment records.

What should you do after a therapy injury?

Protect your health first, then your evidence.

• See a doctor right away and tell them what happened.
• Ask the clinic for copies of your therapy and medical records.
• Write down what happened, including the exercise or treatment involved.
• Photograph visible injuries.
• Do not sign statements before you understand your options.

How is this different from other malpractice claims?

It is a form of medical malpractice, but it often turns on hands-on decisions. Instead of a missed diagnosis or surgery error, the issue may be how fast exercises progressed or whether the therapist responded to pain. In Colorado, a case against a licensed professional generally needs a qualified professional’s review: In a case against a licensed professional like a doctor or hospital, the injured person’s lawyer must file a certificate that a qualified expert reviewed the claim, generally within 60 days of serving the complaint. A medical witness may also be needed to explain how the care fell short.

What compensation may be available?

If negligence is proven, damages can include related medical costs, added rehabilitation, lost income and pain and suffering. If therapy worsened an earlier condition, compensation may also account for delays in recovery. What is available depends on how the injury affects your daily life and long-term health.

How long do you have to take legal action?

Colorado sets strict deadlines for malpractice claims. Medical malpractice claims generally must be filed within 2 years of when you knew, or should have known, about the injury, with outer limits. (C.R.S. § 13-80-102.5) Do not wait until treatment is over. Talk to us for a free case review so we can check your dates.